Hoover roofing is great.
They have done 3 of our roofs and another one for my mom.

Travis
Chris Brown with Bruce's Shakemill roofing (206-349-9307) is the best roofer I have used in my 30 years in the business. He and his Dad used to own Brown's Golden Rule Roofing and they specialized in roof certs and maintainence contracts. Bruce's not only does a fabulous job but has been lower in price by far than competitors. They have a huge crew and will usually have most roofs done in a day. Most buyers are now electing to replace shake with high quality composition.
Mary

Travis
The underwriter will probably require that the roof will be replaced as a condition for approving financing. I had this happen and the roof was replaced during escrow and paid from the proceeds of the sale by the seller. The buyer selected the color, type, etc.

Hi Travis, based upon the age of the roof, just as Janelle has said, it is most likely nearing the end of its lifespan of a shake roof although in my 16 years of experience selling homes with shake roofs - if it was a high quality roof when installed it may respond well to a good cleaning and repair tune up (which involves replacing field and ridge cap shakes that are worn out or cracked) and then it can be certified. One of the roofing contractors that I work with regularly would do a thorough evaluation of the roof and determine if it can be certified. This roofer is an owner/operator and only does cleaning, repairs and certifications and backs up the certifications himself. A certification means that in the 5 years after issuance, if there is a leak, the roofer will come out and repair the roof during this 5 year time period. Should a certification not be acceptable I have another roofer that I use strictly for roof replacement that I and my clients have used for years. The roof replacement company is Pat Rowe with PR Construction in Snohomish. He also is an owner/operator and would be personally replacing your roof if you choose to use him. He is also very competitively priced. If you decide to make an offer on this home, it is highly recommended that you have the home inspected and if the home inspector recommends further review you can decide if you want a roofing specialist to further evaluate it. Once you have these findings, you can then determine if you want to ask for a new roof if it can't be certified to your and the banks satisfaction. Let me know if I can answer any other questions. Best of luck!

18 years on a shake roof is definitely getting to the end of its functional life. Talk to your agent about what he/she recommends doing. With appraisers being more cautious on appraisals these days... it may not appraise with that old of a shake roof in that condition. If the appraiser calls the roof out as something needing attention, then it must be addressed as part of your financing contingency, as the bank will not loan on the house with the roof in its current condition. Banks are far more conservative with lending money right now and it could possibly squash your purchase if the seller and you do not come to some kind of agreement accordingly. I haven't seen the roof... so I am not sure this would happen but your agent can advise you on the matter. Ask your agent for recommended roofers... people he/she has used in the past and had good experience with. I have used a number of roofers recently. Heritage Roofing (Mill Creek) and Star roofing (Snohomish) are my most recent roofers used. Hope this helps, however, talk it over thoroughly with your agent!